Lecture by Visiting Scientist Greg Husak (UCSB/CHC)

Dr. Greg Husak, senior researcher at the University of California Santa Barbara’s Climate Hazards Center, visited Gaborone in October 2025 and delivered a lecture on advances in satellite-based rainfall estimation and their application to climate hazards monitoring across Africa.

Dr. Husak is one of the principal developers of CHIRPS and a leading authority on probabilistic rainfall monitoring for food security early warning. His lecture drew on decades of experience applying remote sensing data in operational contexts across sub-Saharan Africa, with particular attention to the challenges of validation, uncertainty quantification, and communicating probabilistic information to decision-makers.

The visit was arranged through RAMP Lab’s research partnership with the Climate Hazards Center and provided an opportunity for faculty, researchers, and students from the University of Botswana to engage directly with one of the field’s foremost practitioners. The lecture was followed by a working session exploring future directions for CHIRPS-based monitoring in Botswana.